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- WhatsApp changed its privacy policy in a pretty controversial way earlier this year. They gave users time to decide whether they wanted to accepted it or not. However, that time is swiftly running out. The company held firm to its May 15th date, and users have to actually say they want the new policy or face limited functionality.
- YouTube TV users have a way around the Roku and Google squabble. YouTube cleverly links to YouTube TV within the normal YouTube app so Roku users can still get YouTube TV. This effectively bypasses Roku’s ban on the service. You still have to use the regular YouTube app, but at least the content is available.
- Google Pay took the next big step this week. It now offers cross-border payments. The initial rollout lets people in the US send money to people in India and Singapore. Google is also working with Wise and Western Union to make this all work. It’s a bit janky, but it’s a start. You can read more about it at the link.
- Google may let you use your power button to summon Google Assistant. This mimics functionality from other OEMs, such as Samsung’s Bixby. It’s a small thing, but an APK teardown by XDA-Developers revealed code for the functionality. Hit the link to learn more.
- Google was also fined $123 million for excluding an EV charging app in Android Auto. The court found Google to be abusing its platform power with Android Auto by not allowing the app, hence the fine. Basically, Google didn’t allow an Italian EV charging app, instead directing users to its own Google Maps to find EV charging points. That’s a big no-no.
BYJU’S Learning App featuring Disney
Price: Free / $9.99 per month / $99.99 per year
BYJU’s Learning App featuring Disney is an educational app for kids. It includes Disney characters to enhance the learning experience. The app features over 1,000 educational activities for kids between 4 and 8. It’s also kidSAFE and COPPA certified for child safety. In any case, completing the various activities grants stickers for rewards. It’s an overall friendly app. However, it’s also in early access beta so expect some bugs here and there. There is a free version with limited functionality. You get everything with a subscription.
Leap Trigger
Price: Free to play
Leap Trigger is an interesting game. It’s technically a shooter. However, it heavily uses AR heavily, like Pokemon Go or other games. You use the camera viewfinder to find your opponents and then shoot them with the on-screen controls. Players can also dodge bullets and use friends. The game also includes online multiplayer as well as local multiplayer with its single-player mode. It’s a very young game, but it has a lot of potential. We hope this one continues to evolve over time.
Cultivate
Price: Free
Cultivate seems like a gardening app on the surface. In reality, it’s a motivational app that uses digital plants to help you do stuff. You basically create plants and name them with actions. When you perform the action in real life, tap the plant and it keeps growing. The plant withers if you don’t perform the task often enough. It’s a simple thing, but the idea is to get you to keep your plants alive by gamifying your activities. It’s helpful for stuff like exercise or even practicing your piano.
Princess Tale
Price: Free to play
Princess Tale is a mix between a gacha and an idle game. Players collect various characters and the characters level up on their own even when you don’t play. In terms of mechanics, the presentation is solid if a little typical in the genre. There is a storyline to follow and some other stuff to do. The game is a little more buggy than we’d like, but it has only been out about a week. The developers should release bug fixes over time and it’s otherwise a decent game.
One Swipe Notes
Price: $0.99
One Swipe Notes is a decent new note-taking app. The app lets you quickly take notes by opening a floating window with a single swipe. You open the window, take a note, and close it back up. You can only enter so much information in the quick view, but you can open the app and fill in the details later if you want. It works well as a standard note-taking app with a sleek design and plenty of info. The app usually goes for $0.99 but it was actually going for free at the time of this writing (Thursday, May 13th).
If we missed any big Android app or game releases, tell us about it in the comments.
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